1. The Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to treadmills. More specifically, the present invention relates to treadmills with adjustable cushioning members that selectively cushion the impact caused by users when operating the treadmills.
2. Background and Related Art
Treadmills have become increasingly popular in recent years as exercise equipment that is used for either running or walking. Treadmills typically include an exercise platform having an elongate frame with a roller assembly mounted across opposite lateral ends of the frame. A belt is mounted for travel about the roller assembly and is controlled by a motor. The belt is flexible and unable to rigidly support the weight of the user. As such, a user is typically supported by a deck that is disposed between the upper portion of the belt and the frame and is made of a rigid material. As the user walks or runs on the belt, the belt is pressed against the underlying deck to provide mechanical support.
Some treadmills include decks that are directly affixed to the frame to provide a rigid support. As a result, the shock delivered to the deck from the user""s step is reflected back to the foot, ankle and/or leg of the user in a similar manner as the reactive forces are imposed on a walker, a jogger or a runner exercising on a hard-paved surface or a sidewalk. Over long periods of time, the shock experienced by the user may provide detrimental effects to the joints of the user. Even in the short term, exercising on a rigid surface may prove to be tiring and jarring to a user. Attempts have been made to provide a way to cushion the impact reflected back to a user while still providing a rigid surface to support the belt and the user.
One method of attempting to cushion the impact reflected to a user is to provide an intricate shock absorbing system, which is attached to both the frame and the deck. However, the intricate shock absorbing system has proven to be difficult to manufacture and cost prohibitive. Another method includes attaching rubber blocks or cushioning strips along the length of the frame prior to mounting the deck to the frame. However, the rubber blocks or cushioning strips have proven to perform differently from one user to another due to the individual weight of the users. As a result, at times the cushioning has proven to be insufficient while at other times the cushioning has proven to be excessive, depending on the user. Another method includes the use of elastomeric springs that are positioned between the frame and the deck to provide an amount of resistance that is proportional to the extent that the deck deflected by a user while exercising.
Each user exercising on a treadmill does not cause the same amount of deflection. Furthermore, the amount of cushioning needed also depends upon the exercise that the user performs on the treadmill. For instance, running on the treadmill tends to require more cushioning than walking on the same treadmill. In addition, the amount of cushioning desired varies from user to user according to personal taste. As such, it would therefore be an advancement in the art to provide a treadmill that offers differing amounts of cushioning. A traditional attempt to provide individualized cushioning required physically removing strips of cushioning material and inserting other strips into the treadmill to selectively provide a desired amount of cushioning. This method proved to be time consuming and awkward.
As such, what is needed is a treadmill in which a user may selectively adjust the amount of cushioning provided without having to disassemble and remove pieces of the treadmill.
It is, therefore, an object of the present invention to provide a treadmill with a cushioning mechanism that can be selectively adjusted to provide differing amounts of cushioning to a user exercising on the treadmill.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a treadmill that can be conveniently adjusted to provide differing amounts of cushioning without disassembling the cushioning mechanism.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a treadmill with a cushioning mechanism that can be conveniently adjusted to provide differing amounts of cushioning depending on the different type of exercises to be performed on the treadmill.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a treadmill with a cushioning mechanism that can be selectively adjusted to provide differing amounts of cushioning based on individual preferences.
To achieve the foregoing objects, and in accordance with the invention as embodied and broadly described herein a treadmill with an adjustable impact absorbing mechanism is provided. The impact absorbing mechanism is configured to adjustably cushion the impact of a user exercising on the treadmill. The adjustable impact absorbing mechanism allows the user to select an amount of cushioning provided by selectively adjusting the impact absorbing mechanism.
The treadmill comprises a frame and an endless belt trained on the frame, wherein the belt has an upwardly exposed exercise section. A deck is disposed between the exercise section of the belt and the frame. A plurality of cushioning members are positioned on opposing sides of the frame such that each of the cushioning members includes a plurality of portions with different cushioning properties. The cushioning members are configured to be adjustable so as to selectively position a portion of the cushioning members between the frame and the deck and are mechanically interconnected such that movement of one of the cushioning members results in corresponding movement of the other cushioning members.
One embodiment includes an adjustable, flexible cantilever that comprises a flexible arm and a bumper. The arm includes one end that is mounted to the frame and the other end that is freely disposed from the frame. The bumper extends between the free end and the deck. The cantilever also includes a brace mounted to the frame adjacent to the cantilever, wherein the brace may be selectively moved along the length of the cantilever.
Another embodiment comprises an impact absorbing mechanism having a plurality of cushioning members that each rotate in a horizontal plane. Each cushioning member has a plurality of portions, each portion having different cushioning properties. Horizontal rotation of each cushioning member adjusts the amount of cushioning between the deck and frame. The cushioning members may have indicia thereon, e.g., numbers, that can be viewed by a user to determine the amount of cushioning selected.
In another embodiment, the impact absorbing mechanism comprises: (i) a spring; and (ii) a screw configured to extend therethrough. The screw is positioned in a hole that extends through the frame and/or treadmill deck. The pitch of the screw threads and the spring coil frequency correspond such that the screw threads within the inner diameter of the spring. As such, the rotation of the screw selectively extends or contracts the effective length of the spring, depending on the direction of rotation. Thus, adjustment of the screw correspondingly adjusts the degree of cushioning.
Additional objects, features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by the practice of the invention. The features and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instruments and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims. These and other features of the present invention will become more fully apparent from the following description and appended claims, or may be learned by the practice of the invention as set forth hereinafter.